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The thing that always impressed me about him is how effortlessly he swings that massive bat while looking like a middle aged dad. Guy was a beast with no training or needles.
It's like saying jordan wasn't a good 3 point shooter so he couldn't play today. Reality is if he needed to be a good 3 point shooter he would have been.
That's the key word, ADJUST. Pluck him out of 1927 and drop him in the Yankees lineup tomorrow, he won't hit anything. But give him some time to study and adapt to modern pitching, I think he absolutely could make the adjustment, and would be at least a serviceable hitter, possibly a very good one.
@@johns.8220 exactly. But you know a modern hitter might have problems facing a pitcher from that era for the first time too. Because of all the junk they threw
@@Shinobi33 Maybe, but I think that would be a lot less of an adjustment. The "junk" that pitchers threw back then had a lot of movement, but was very slow, probably in the 70s. And was aided by the fact that baseballs got beat to oblivion over the course of the game, making it harder for the batter to see. But a modern hitter who is used to seeing 95 mph+ fastballs and cutters and 85 mph changeups on a daily basis would likely adapt to older-style pitchers a lot quicker than the other way around.
For me two things stand out at the point of contact Ruth is always is the same position. Ruth is consistent at the point of contact. Secondly Ruth generates so much power when he strides into the swing and gets incredible hip rotation! It’s awesome how much torque Ruth generates with hi# swing! You can read his uniform number on his back on the 3rd base side when Ruth swings!
I got to hold and take two abbreviated swings with a Ruth bat. The Babe Ruth Museum toured around 15 to 20 years ago. They made a stop at PNG field for a AA Curve game (Pirate's AA team). It was after the game and I engaged with the curator of the display. No one was around. It was an interesting conversation. He sensed I've knocked a few balls around as he was telling me the weight distribution in Ruth's 42oz bat. The majority of weight near the end. He pulled one out and I was BLESSED to have held and taken those 2 easy swings. The bat indeed felt its weight. What was stunning is during the first swing, itgave immediate feedback that the bat felt much lighter with motion. More like a 32 or 33 oz bat. The second swing was more like a 1/3 to 1/2 swing. I had never felt anything like it, nor will I ever. As the swing approached my rear hip, the bat felt incredibly light. The feedback was clear that the more you accelerated with this bat, you are able to drive because of the distribution making the bat feel lighter with motion. Most surreal sensation of countless times taking cuts through my life.
He would rake today as well. He’d figure it out and make tweets where needed. The bats are better and lighter, and the baseballs are harder. He’d still be great.
@@jmsd25 "Today I did it. By biggest acheivement in my chosen field of competition. I ate 77 hot dogs. OH CRAP I HAVE A BASEBALL GAME LATER! Hope coach doesn't expect me to try any bunt hits"
Even in slow mo the Babe gets the bat through the hitting zone (hip to hip) at an almost indecipherable speed. Amazing. Some people are just meant to do certain things. He was meant to hit a baseball hard and far.
In 1921, Babe had 59 home runs, scored 177 runs and batted in 168 in a 154 game season, and he had an OPS of 1.359. And you're asking if he could hit in today's game? The only thing any athlete can do is dominate everybody in his or her own era, and Ruth did that like nobody else who has ever played baseball. The only other player in a major sport I can think of who might compare for dominating in his era was Don Hutson. He retired with 488 receptions, 7991 receiving yards and 99 receiving touchdowns. The next closest at the time (a guy who retired 2 years later than Hutson) had 288 receptions for 4801 yards and 45 touchdowns. Hutson also won 4 NFL championships in 11 seasons and led the league in interceptions one season. Hutson was a great player on both sides of the ball, and Ruth was on track to make the Hall of Fame as a pitcher when he converted to a full time outfielder because they couldn't keep his bat out of the lineup. They were both basically playing a different game than everybody else of their eras.
@@josephhouk6703 By the way, the discrimination against black players in baseball and other sports was reprehensible, but given that quotas were clearly in place for years after Jackie Robinson broke the color line (the Red Sox didn't have a black player until 12 years after Robinson), I guess we can pretty much throw out every MLB player prior to 1970 or so.
To paraphrase that joke: Person one: "How would Ruth hit today?" Person two: "He'd average about .290 with twenty-five home runs." Person one: "You're kidding!" Person two: "Remember he's over a hundred years old!"
They keep saying Ruth couldn't hit today ? In these puny stadiums ,he'd be fine,BUT I doubt today's players ,could go back then ,and put up his numbers ,fields with 450 ft+ to center regularly, they couldn't do it,balls darker,no lights.. 🚂 travel
Ruth hit more home runs that year than any other American League team. In 1927, his 60 home runs were more than any AL team other than the rest of his teammates on the Yankees, who combined for 61.
I've always wondered if the Babe's stride came from his background as a pitcher. It is as though he is doing a one-for-one counter to the power generating stride of the pitcher.
I read a couple of articles stating that the Babe ordered SHORTER bats as he aged, as opposed to merely lighter ones. Better leverage. If you look at the Babe's swing, it evolved as he got older. He was more than just a big guy who swung as hard as he could. The Babe adapted with the times!
Great analysis and conclusions. I have had similar discussions with Smart Alec know-it-alls and I’ve never convinced anybody. I grew up watching Willie Mays in San Francisco and I’ve had people tell me that he would be just an average hitter today because of better pitchers today. But, just as you explain here, I have maintained that all great hitters have two things in common: the ability to choose the right pitch to hit and the ability to deliver the bat to the exact spot required to hit the ball squarely. This is not an easy thing to do. The science of pitching and the science of pitching from experts such as you have made each act very, very efficient and eliminated the idiosyncrasies of years gone by, but the ability to see the right pitch and explode in a controlled manner to deliver the bat to a spot no bigger than a 1/2 inch on a 95/hr moving ball is God given magic. All the great hitters have that in common and at the moment of impact, they all look the same. What they do before that moment is irrelevant because it can be adjusted and refined because that’s what you do.
@@deepcosmiclove Some of them are. Similar to teh Original Posters Point, Pitching is also about Two things: the ability locate the pitches regardless of speed, and the ability keep the hitter off balance. The pitchers who have done that in any era have found success. Kershaw or Gibson. Clemens or Ohtani. Pedro or DeGrom. Randy or Snell.
The Babe Ruth Museum in Baltimore has a front view video of Babe Ruth's swing...extremely smooth and quick. Babe Ruth, like any elite player in any era, could play in today's game.
@@nyc7708ems Yeah okay but look at what he was doing early in his career. The waggle is the difference in slugging .550+ because it is the source of angular momentum. Ruth and Bonds and Ted all waggled and they are in a class by themselves. Jack Mankin is the leading authority on angular momentum and its extremely positive effects on bat speed and barrel accuracy. Ted has a section in his hitting book called Light is Right where he was not well and hit a ball over 400 feet and over the wall barely swinging one of Stan Spence’s toothpick bats.
What wt bat do the players use today? 31oz. I believe he would have made any necessary adjustments because he was driven to out perform his competition. His ego would have pushed him to do whatever it took to be the best.
@@billatkins1026 Yeah you are talking nonsense. As MLB(Major League Baseball) bat regulations require, no baseball bat weighs less than 32 ounces or 2 pounds. In fact, the lightest bats in MLB are actually 2 pounds in weight. Most players choose 33 and 34 ounce bats. Show a citation for 31 ounce bats in MLB.
Totally agree with your analysis. Anyone who's read THE ART OF HITTING .300 by Charlie Lau knows that when the Babe finished his stride his feet, hips, shoulders, head, and hands are exactly where they should be. He hit .342 lifetime and played much of his career when the spitball was legal so he would be able to handle today's pitching although, as you said, perhaps not as well.
Your “running start “ analogy is I think spot on . It’s like the difference between pitching from a full windup vs the stretch. The thing that would make this difficult would be adjusting to off speed stuff but they say the game slows down for great players and it’s hard to argue that a man who’s name is synonymous with greatness wasn’t one of the greatest players!
The amount of homeruns he hit in that era would be like someone hitting 80 in a season and 1200 in their career. He was in a different world than everyone else. Oh and he hit .342
The coil ... the big stride ... the exaggerated move ... need SUPER QUICK hands. ... Do all kinds of exercises for the hands and wrists ... swing a bat weighted at the end, (weighted only enough that the bat could "almost" be used in a game, and quit as soon as the bat drops below the swing plane due to tiredness. Musial kept soft squeeze balls in both jacket pockets and squeezed them constantly, over and over. The heavy dead weights don't do this. Tim Tebow was strong as hell, he lifted heavy dead weights everyday, but his hands were too slow. Did he EVER pull a fastball on the inside black? ... (hint ... never!!!) ... plenty of Tebow baseball you tubes to prove it.
@@donlawson3330 And there were no WALLS that helped the hitters get doubles and triples like they do now...players back then could literally go up against the short fence and snag balls that are home runs and turn them into outs. Now , they have 15 feet of wall behind them and outfielders cannot navigate jumping up against that wall...balls that should be caught now, aren't
What I see here, and impresses me, is that in the middle of all this stuff going on he adjusted to hit a ball that is inside. So he has a huge bat, he's moving before he knows where the pitch will be, yet he still manages tuck his arms in to get the bat closer to his body mid swing. I've never cared about his swing, but seeing that adjustment makes me think he'd be just fine in today's game because if the bat is where the ball is going to be then you'll hit it, no matter what era you're in.
Georgie would have access to today's sports science (no bottles of whiskey, 12 chili dogs, and 4 groupies during the seventh inning stretch) as well as hitting coaches to adjust to today's game. He may be Barry Bonds, but I think he would be great.
They knew that was unhealthy for the body even then, he just didn’t care, and likely wouldn’t in the modern game either. Which is why he’d be at best Tim Tebow as a hitter
I agree with everything till you compared a drunk to a cheater. Bonds was great, don't get me wrong. But he deliberately cheated baseball. Not for any rules, or whatever, but simply for greed. He was jealous people thought KGJ was better. Sorry but people are gonna think that when KGJ is just as good and not a complete asshole to people. Bonds is a horrible human being along with cheating. So I hope thst piece of shit never gets in the HoF. Bonds, Clemens, Giambi, Rodriguez, Canseco, McGuire, Palmiero, Sosa, and everyone else proven to take steroids to deliberately enhance their performance, yeah they can all get fucked.
@@cptsparklfingerz9210 Clemens never tested positive, was cleared of perjury, and even Canseco admitted naming him was just because of his performance and not because he actually knew. Sosa failed a test in 2003 that was known to give many false positives and was mishandled by the test giver. Steroids were known to be used as far back as the 60s. Why isn't anyone looking at Nolan Ryan?
@@cptsparklfingerz9210 also, Ruth at the very minimum tried to cheat. He even tried to inject himself with sheep testicles. Amphetamines we're a thing in that time also.
I’m on the fence with this argument. No doubt today’s pitchers have a velocity advantage, however, they also have lower seams, mounds, stricter foreign substance policy and scrutiny ect. Cobb had to contend with the dead ball era, which provided a distinct advantage to the pitcher while simultaneously endangering the hitter. I mean, those dudes were swinging at black baseballs. it would be an unbelievable adjustment for any of today’s stars to step in the box against a cy young just as well as it would babe staring down Pedro Martinez. Fun to think about though, Thanks for the content Matt!
I agree. I make a similar argument with people regarding Basketball in the 60's compared to today. Wilt Chamberlain would struggle with greater defenders if he played today, but Michael Jordan would also struggle if he had to play in heavy canvas sneakers (Chuck Taylor Converse) and had to dribble with his hand on top of the ball.
@@jongordon7914 Hi......Wilt Chamberlain weighed 275, out power lifted Arnold Schwarzenegger, was a top collegiate track sprinter and high jumper, you name it, he did it better than everybody. please name me a current NBA center that can run a 9.5 hundred yard sprint, bench press over 500 pounds and jump a foot over the backboard.
@@Instramark You forgot that he could also lift up a car and throw it and shoot a spider web from his palm. Yikes! You're getting caught up in the folklore and urban myths. Wilt wasn't 275, he was 300+. He literally says that himself. Don't go by what's listed on paper. No, he couldn't jump a foot over the backboard. I'm not even convinced he could touch the top of it. A foot over the backboard would be 14 feet. And no, he couldn't outlift Schwarzenegger. You're conflating so many different stories. Arnold said Wilt was strong, and he was, but he was talking about triceps extensions. If you really believe he could run the 100yd dash in 9.5 seconds, I don't know what to say. Wilt was an incredible player. One of the best ever. But there's no way he would put up the same numbers today against teams that played better help defense. Same goes for Jordan playing in an era where he couldn't travel and carry the ball.
The Yankees started using numbers on their uniforms in 1929. So, assuming this fact Ruth had some great years from 1929 to 32. The youngest he would be in this film would be 34 years old. In 1932 Ruth hit 41 HR and batted .341 at 37 years old. Point being that his technique was honed by this time. It would be interesting to see his swing prior to 1929. Thanks, good work.
And the only Yankee player to be the only one in their history to wear a certain number? 4 Gehrig...he was first and last to wear it. No other Ball player can state that.
Don't have much video of slender, fast, athletic Ruth. He didn't always have that body shape, that's just how he was when video became a more common thing.
Ruth will rake in any era. I can't believe there could be any debate. I will concede if he hopped in a time machine and was entered into a contemporary game to pinch hit, he'd likely fair poorly. But he's the man who literally hanged baseball. He's a natural hitter. Giving him some time to work on his hitting, and it's GOAT again. But more to the point, were he born and raised in our era, his entire approach would be different. We can pretend pitching back then was a joke, but it wasn't. Babe faced oodles of cheese and today, he'd face far less cheese. Not to mention, were he to arrive in a time machine, pitchers would be in awe and intimidated, thus pitching accordingly. Simply put, he isn't just another player, or simply a great hitter of his era - he was the greatest hitter of his era and again, single-handedly changed the entire nature of the sport. The game has changed a lot, not only since his day, but it has changed a lot in a short time - which could lead someone to suggest Tony Gwynn couldn't hit today's pitchers. Of course Gwynn could. Same with the Babe.
yes his swing is so heavy and vulnerable because of the size of the bat he chose to swing. to get all that weight around, he had to make a big motion, as you said. at the time, he knew he could hit the speeds the pitchers were throwing with any size bat, so he chose the heaviest he could possibly get through the zone. but in today's game, i think he could downsize his bat, shorten up a little bit, and be just fine. he was a professional hitter, maybe the best ever, so i trust that he'd find a way to adapt.
He learned his swing from Father Mathias at the orphanage as a boy, so not from Joe Jackson. He had far superior eye sight, coordination, hand strength, wrist strength and forward weight shift. His follow through was legendary. He would smack the hell out of any pitcher in any era - with the heavy bat and without much adjustment.
Great analysis, Matt, thanks for this. I agree with many here that Ruth would have made adjustments. Like most great athletes, he was very smart about the game he played. When he got in a slump, he would even go behind the plate during batting practice-he had been a left-handed catcher at St. Mary's at times-just to get a better feel for the pitches. He spoke to sportswriters with great intelligence and in some detail-about his swing. And yes, he did use a 54-oz bat for some years, AND he bunted safely for hits as many as 10 times in one season. Would he have hit .340 over 21 years? Almost certainly not. Would have struck out over 100 times in a season? Almost certainly so. But he might also have hit over 1,000 home runs on his career. Most of the parks he played in had fences at greater distances than they do today. If there was an overflow crowd, they often put fans in the outfield, roped them off, and called anything hit over that rope a double. For a time there was even a rule that, if you hit the ball out of the park, the ump could whether it would have landed foul or not. Of course, this basically cost ONLY Babe Ruth home runs at the time.
That's not even a real game Babe Ruth swing. That looks like a pepper or some kind of fungo goofing around swing. Look at one of the Babe's real game swings. It's a mechanical thing of natural beauty. Babe had a great natural coil, going straight down with his first movement increasing the distance the bat has to travel so he'd gain as much speed/force as possible, then he was able to effortlessly fully uncoil quickly with full arm extension and powerful bat angle in his hands. Babe was swinging more with his core then his hands because of his arm extension and extreme bat angle. He was using launch angle 100 years ago. Flawlessly.
Mark Tito, I agree with most of what you wrote except for the part about extension. Babe didn’t extend his back arm into the hit like so many players do today. His back arm maintains a 90 degree bend through contact and doesn’t straighten until well after contact is made and into his follow through. Players today are taught to halt their rotation and extend their arms. Instructors are focused on teaching certain movements and results which is why we don’t see many natural swings like Ruth or Griffey or other greats anymore.
That explains why they had a good shot of it. No camera person with a giant 1920s camera is going to stand that close during the live game and the zoom lenses weren't thst great.
I watched a video of Ty Cobb's swing, as we know he help his hands apart, but once he stated his swing the top hand slid down and formed a regular grip. The rest of the swing looked "normal" and yes Cobb could hit it today's game. I agree they would need to make adjustments, but Cobb could still hit, 367 lifetime BA good no but still damn good.
Great comment. When Cobb was asked what he would hit in 1955, he said .. .290. Really, only .290? The game is that good now? Cobb said no, it's because I am 70 years old!
Cobb what probably hit over .370 in today's game if they shifted him Bunt single,steal 2nd steal 3rd...score 160 runs w 120 steals... And he d strike out maybe 15 x.
He falls forward to set his momentum so as to not allow the ball to push him back or zap his strength thru the ball. The way he whips the bat forward and around, increasing velocity and angular momentum thru the zone, by pulling his lead elbow up and back. Great footage. Ichiro had a similar style actually, he leaned forward during the pitcher's wind up getting a head start.
Great analysis, Mr. A! With the modern tools that players have at their disposal today, The Babe would be every bit as good as he was in his own Era. He also was an awesome pitcher, which had to be a real advantage as a hitter. He would still have that today. Concerning an unusual stance, many of the greats, including Musial, Ichiro, Carew, Carl Yastremski, and so many others had their unique stance. The great ones make it work.
Babe Ruth’s swing is the most fundamentally correct swing ever. Mainly from his front leg stride starting location (all the way back). That puts all the weight on his back hip and gives him the maximum distance and energy moving forward. Doesn’t get any better than that.
Absolutely. He got his whole body into the hit. His mechanics would dominate the game today. Hitting has regressed for many reasons. Lighter bats are a big part of it.
@@RatedRex1 as far as the kinetic energy he creates. He starts with both legs together and a bat tip. As far as energy creation goes, you can’t make more than that.
@@RatedRex1 Really bad argument. You're using technique of today vs. equipment of his era. Ruth would be swinging a 35 oz bat (sorta like the bat Odor uses) but with much more power. His swing would be quicker and I'm sure a career .360 hitter (Babe Ruth) would "probably" figure out a quicker method for delivering his stance. He'd be a Cecil (or Prince) Fielder. Really big guy meant to hit homers and 115 mph line drives to the gaps. I'm sure Babe Ruth would adapt to todays biggest stuff.
His footwork in this clip reminds me a lot of Wil Myers, the trail foot sliding forward at the end because of the weight transfer and the pure momentum of the swing.
Great hitters are big, strong, and most importantly stay in hitting zone for a long time. Babe Ruth demonstrates all of this. Therefore, yes, his swing is an elite swing. Clearly has good front side mechanics allowing his knob to work up early and and create backward barrel bath or swivel. I think people are misled by the barrel tip because he does achieve good early connection at toe tap. He’s using mechanics that I see many great hitters in today’s game don’t realize they have. Like Trout and Arod thinking they are swinging down to the ball. No they are not swinging down to the ball.
I'm seeing strong fast wrists. He keeps his hands close to the body. Not a lot of arm extension. May in part be related to the location of the pitches, but it is interesting that that's the way Hank Aaron generated power also. I'm guessing if you swing 42 ounces, your wrists will get awfully strong sooner or later.
Okay let's get one thing straight straight it comes to the Golden Age of Baseball. Babe Ruth was a professional baseball player. Baseball has about around since as early as 1847. The game as changed and players have adapted over the course of 180 years. The Babe adapted to his abilities as a pitcher to a hitter. Something people have struggled with doing since even before him. To say Ruth couldn't compete today is no different than saying today's ball players couldn't compete in those days either. People these days say this stuff like they think they know what they're talking about but they clesrly don't. Theh didn't play in the 20s n 30s. Anyways, Ruth is the greatest Baseball player of all time. There will never be another Babe Ruth, period. But the Babe could definitely have adapted to today's game. Today's players take care of their bodies much better and if Ruth went thru the training and health care of today's Baseball, he'd be even better than what he was. No, i do not believe the Babe Ruth we know n love would be successful in today's game, but an adaptive Babe Ruth would DOMINATE. Walter Johnson was throwing 100mph. So the Babe has a taste of thst anyways. But notice how the whole "everyone is throwing 100mph" arguments stop when you bring up a players abilities to adspt. Today's players had to adapt to it. Everyone today throwing 100mph only started AFTER Aroldis Chapman broke the record. He's still playing. People have adapted to him n everyone else throwing 100mph, so why can't Babe Ruth? He could have definitely adapted to today's game. You don't get called the GOAT for nothing.
There are a lot of wives tales that come from that golden age of baseball. I do not believe Johnson was throwing 100 mph back then. I also don’t believe Ruth hit that one ball 660 feet or whatever it was in Tampa.
Barry bonds tilted his bat and his toe tap is somewhat similar to him starting close with his legs then striding. Bonds would start wide, bringing the front leg back then stride out.
Babe has the greatest swing of all time. His movements are part of what made him the greatest. Give a young player a heavy wood bat and they will learn to swing with similar movements as they learn how to recruit their big muscles and get their body into the hit. Today they use lighter bats and never get these movements ingrained into their swing. Their position at launch and contact are also different. You don’t see players today getting as much hand depth and they’re not as connected at contact. Now everyone says pitching is too dominant for these mechanics and they wouldn’t work today. Those who believe this don’t understand those movements were also his timing mechanism.
Another interesting question...Would a modern-day player have been able to hit back in the 1920's? No batting helmet, no batting gloves, no shin guard, no elbow armor, and pitchers willing to throw at the batters' heads. My guess is that most 2020 era players would not have lasted two games against the normal 1925 era pitcher.
Plus fewer off days, only day games, travel by train, nowhere near the advanced equipment to help recover, spit balls, balls used more, bats less scientifically designed...
I tried to hit exactly like the Babe a few times and what I found was his setup always had me off balance. When you start with both feet close together then stride toward the pitcher with your front hip you are essentially letting your body fall forward and breaking the fall when you land on your lead foot. So many things can go wrong and you likely end up with bad weight transfer which leads to stumbling or falling down after completing swings or when you swing and miss. Sometimes the Babe would either spin out of control or fall on his bottom when he swung and missed due to not having the proper balance in his stance. If he played today he would use a 33-ounce bat and stand with his feet spaced no more than shoulder width apart. He would wave the barrel forward like Barry Bonds did as the pitcher is getting set to deliver then hold it steady crouching slightly as he prepared to hit. He would stride forward creating upper and lower body separation allowing his hips and legs to drive the barrel through the hitting zone to contact with the ball. The Babe definitely would not hit in today's game using the batting setup from his era. I have no doubt he could adjust and be a dangerous and feared modern MLB hitter.
Very good analysis and conclusion Coach Matt….I would whole heartedly agree with this….look what subtle adjustments took Jose Batista from a mediocre player to a home run killing machine….👍🏻💪🏻 ⚾️ 🇺🇸
The "negative move" or "loading" phase of his overall swing is his own, as it is with any good hitter. However, as his front foot touches and his hands begin to launch the bat toward the ball, the important rotation phase of his swing begins. This where biomechanics and physics kick in and he looks strikingly like every other good hitter. When critiquing a swing, one must isolate the loading phase from the actual swing itself. Hitters personalize what they do during their stance and loading in order to be comfortable and prepare for rotation. Once rotation begins, physics dictates what must happen to be able to effectively hit a ball. To be a superior hitter your body must figure out the physics. Most folks look at Babe's swing and just see the strange stuff he does prior to rotation. What counts is what he does during rotation. Babe would absolutely be able to hit well in today's environment.
He loads the bat just as Dick Allen, Ted Williams and Barry Bonds did and others do. He builds bat speed and power by getting the bat going. He'd be more than fine in todays game as the level of coaching has been specialized AND the money has become at such a level that I suspect he'd behave quite a bit better on the dietary agenda. He'd have had to hit the weights a bit and do some conditioning. Modern day players seldom get fat or come to camp out of shape anymore. It used to be common for them to get to spring training fat and out of shape.
Well said. Been loving MLB for 60 years. The lore of the present day game is absent. Too many games and all under the microscope. Just drenched with it. I like the days of the daily sports page and the box scores, a copy of Smith and Street's season preview and the yearly copy of Who's Who in Baseball......and the Game of the Week. All you need.
@@Instramark Wouldn't hurt the MLB game to cancel about 10 franchises, and set them up as the new AAA level for the league. Talent just isn't there to support all these MLB teams today.
I remember an interview with Henry Aaron when he was closing in on Ruth's career HR record. Aaron was handed the bat Ruth used in 1927 which is too long and heavy under today's rules. He took a couple of swings with it and remarked about the strength of Ruth to get the bat around on pitches. He also pointed out that most of the bat was solid hitting area. Keep in mind, Ted Williams is the man who started the current trend of fat barreled, thin-handled bats and emphasis on bat speed instead of strength.
When Williams played [40s & 50s] there were a lot more fireballing pitchers with 90+mph fastballs than there were in the 20s when Ruth played, so bat speed was more important.
Obviously, if you plucked him out of 1927 and stuck him in the Yankees lineup tomorrow, he wouldn't hit anything; modern pitching is far ahead of where it was in his day. But I absolutely believe he could adapt and adjust to the modern game given enough time, and be at least a serviceable hitter if not a very good one. He absolutely had the strength and the hand-eye coordination to be a good hitter in today's game, and if honed with modern training and nutrition he'd fit into a Major League roster.
@@my2l there's a chance his numbers would be lower, but there's no chance he wouldn't be elite. If I had to guess, I'd say he'd hit .310-.320 with 600-650 home runs. Take a look at him against Walter Johnson. Everyone pretty much agrees Walter Johnson was throwing around 100 miles an hour. Babe hit .280 off of him with a .389 on base percentage and a home run every 15 at bats. I don't feel like figuring it out but I would imagine his OPS off him was close to 1.000 because he also had 8 doubles and two triples in 107 AB.
@@rhull3939 no one agrees that johnson threw 100 lol, in fact most historians think he threw 88 topping 91 which was elite for his era. MLB average was only 87 in 1999 which was in the middle of the steroid era and 70+ years after johnson's time with improved training and mechanics. If you know anything about pitching mechanics you can easily tell that johnson didn't throw 100. Babe might hit .250 with 20 homers IF he makes major adjustments and ditch the bad habits, sports have evolved so much in 100 years it's not nearly comparable. Jesse owens would be smoked by many high school boys today lol.
@@my2l I've heard this argument before and I completely disagree. Ruth had elite talent. Once in a lifetime talent. So far above and beyond players of his day it was silly. He was never in the type of physical shape that players are now. He literally never pushed his limitations. If he played in this time, I'd bet my house that he'd still be in the top ten greatest hitters with access to today's training methods and technology and equipment. What would have happened if he was in the 90s and 00's and did steroids like everyone else. Not condoning that but it worked for Bonds and so many others. It's impossible to think that he'd be anything but well, well above average.
I helped several young batters by loading up on every pitch. Treat every pitch as hittable. That's a head start. When you see its hittable, continue your swing, if not, hold off. By doing that, you have time to better see the ball.
I play ‘recreated’ baseball the way it was played in the 1800s. Bats were much bigger; as stated you need to do something to get it going. Pitching was also slower.
Agree 1000%. I've been a huge Ruth fan for over 50 years, but he developed his "Happy Gilmore" swing to hit 1920s pitching that averaged < 3 k per 9 innnings pitched! (As Stengel would have said, "You can look it up!") No way they were throwing 95.
Couldn’t help but notice the damn snake in his britches during that loop of his swing in the first minute of the video 😂 No surprise, the Babe was hung like a horse. Must have added some bonus momentum to his hips getting around/through the ball.
I have adapted his swing and with his style for my own style. It allows you to swing a lot of weight very quickly, which is good for long ball hitting. The hardest part is getting the timing down, but once you get it, you can easily catch up to any pitching. I have been able to catch up to D1 fastpitch girls playing when i get the timing down
There is another video up showing Ruth in the NL at the end of his career hitting against Hubbell, and I thought it showed his swing much closer to dead level than the very moderate uppercut in this video. Agree? I got the idea from my reading that the power hitter swing goes back to Wagner and from there was improved by Jackson, Ruth, and Williams. Is there enough ancient film around to compare the swings of those four? Others who might be good studies for power swing technique might be Foxx, Greenberg, Kiner, Kingman and Pujols. I guess I'd like to see how the swings of good hitters who hit with power differed from the swings of hitters who successfully specialized in homers.
The info is probably out there, but I wonder what velocity he was seeing back in the day and did they change much from his early career to mid and later years. Excellent analysis. Well done and entertaining idea/video. Thanks.
Pitchers can't do as much as other athletes to throw all that much harder. A little but not all that much. Most can't throw close to one-hundred for more five innings, and the ones that do? Half are out with injuries the next year. Tom Seaver? Never had arm issues. He was a "drop and drive" pitcher. It was ALL in his legs. He did have sone minor sciatica issues but only cost him a few months in his tenth season or so.Yeah, the year he struck out 200 for like the eighth straight time (a record). I think his season ended affer the 201 strikeout. Pitchers tire late in games when it is their "legs" that tire. That's why they do those wind-sprints in the outfield during batting-practice .
There’s a lot of swing from different players I like from their own batting stances. My favorite batting stance of all time is Julio Franco, I love to imitate it for a long time and i’m also a switch hitter. I also tried to do Mickey Tettleton’s as well
Speaking of Julio Franco. It makes me think of Jim Kaat. And the reason for that is Jim Kaat is the only pitcher to face both Ted Williams and Julio Franco. Williams started his career in 1939 and Franco retired in 2007. That's a 68 year gap. And Ted Williams faced many of the same pitchers Babe Ruth faced. And at the time of Franco's retirement in 2007, there are still players playing today that played in 2007. So when people talk about how certain players from certain eras can't compete in the modern game, I say BS.
We are talking about the greatest hitter of all time. I think bat weight would be the only adjustment he would make in todays game. Ruth's eye was phenomenal has he walked over 700 more times that striking out. The only player comparable to him in 2022 would be Juan Soto.
Great hitters are great hitters, regardless of their mechanics. A great hitter from yesteryear, Royals' legend George Brett, comes to mind. He became a disciple of a guy name Walt Hriniak, and developed a looping yet smooth swing that others tried but were unsuccessful. Hriniak's hitting theories were largely proven ineffective, but Brett was able to succeed with them (or in spite of them) simply because of great ability.
@@careygreen4274 You may be right, but my point is that I could have been Brett's hitting coach and he would have raked. And I don't know jack s#$t about hitting.
Some years back I knew a gentleman named Luther "Red" Harvel. Red was a retired scout for the As and I believe one or two other teams. He also had a lengthy, mostly minor league career, as a player including one season with Cleveland in 1928 where he played against Ruth. He was very impressed with the man, and not just his hitting. He commented that he was faster afoot than some might think and that is was not a good idea to challenge his arm. He was of the opinion that Ruth could have starred in the game of the 1980s when I knew him. He was a lot of fun to talk to.
The question is, could today's hitters hit back then? All day games, no specific batter's eye. Legal spitballs, dirty baseballs, unreal changeups, junkballers. Spiteful pitchers. Didn't need analytics, only 8 teams per league, all weaknesses were known. Thanks Matt for showing this and not crapping on the Babe. I have been watching MLB since 1967 and today's game is mostly unbearable to watch. Softball uppercut swings, 200 strikeouts, possible robo ump, replay, having to hear about the money endlessly, season way too long, playoffs unbearable and the worst of the worst...the DH... Matt, I rarely watch games anymore unless it's Bryce Harper, instead I just watch your channel when I need a fix!
As much as I love the games history but there is no comparison. I personally think Babe Ruth doesn’t even make it to the big leagues today. I think a a .220 hitter today is a superstar back then.
@@vladimirlopez7840 I agree, the pitching it just so much better today than back then. There's no way any of those hitters in that era could even touch today's pitching. Babe Ruth never hit against professional pitchers, he hit against farmers
Daniel Moore Vladimir Lopez, Pitching was different then but not necessarily worse. Remember the pitching mound was 15 inches high, not 10, the strike zone was letters to the knees, foreign substances were common, the bats were heavier, the ball wasn’t juiced, and the stadiums were larger. There was a dead-ball era for a reason. I doubt any of today’s hitters could do any better against 1920s pitching than the average player from that era did. That makes the babe’s numbers even more impressive not less. In 1920 he lead the league in HR with 54. 2nd place was 19. GOAT.
@@vladimirlopez7840you can literally smell the nasty generation Z sweat coming off your forehead dude. I grew up in the 90s and 00s. Nobody back then said such utterly asinine statements such as the ones you typed out there. It’s no wonder people from every other generation can relate to one another and then there’s you guys… who literally nobody can stand.
@@danielmoore8695you too. All your knowledge comes from video games and dumb 🍑 ESPN commentators oohing and aahing over exit velocity and spin rate. Never mind the fact that these things weren’t measured way back when, but let’s just state as a fact that they’re much better now because someone paid to market the game to r3tarded gen Z kids said so.
I'm pretty sure this clip was from a batting practice in Brooklyn from 1931. Ruth started his career swinging a 52-54 oz bat. Over the years, he gradually went down in weight until he was swinging a 38 oz bat when he retired. He used a 44 oz bat to hit 60 HRs in 1927, and was usually swinging a 42 oz bat at the time of this film . By the time he was swinging a 38 oz bat, he had shortened his swing up considerably and it wasn't too much different than you'd see today. That's like swinging with a donut on the average MLB bat today. There's another YT channel with the youtuber swinging a replica of one of Ruth's 40 oz bats, along with replica bats of Honus Wagner, Shoeless Joe Jackson and Mickey Mantle. Pretty cool to see the guy really stuggle until he decided to mimic Ruth's swing, and use contact swings to hit line drives with the Wagner bat.
I didn't play for long time, just some years during my youth, but my longest homerun was trying to emulate this swing, i used to open my legs and put my bat very back over my shoulders, i remember a pitcher throwing the ball very fast so i decided to put my legs next to each other and the bat almost in front of me, so i just went against the ball and the result was a monster homerun by the center field!!!.
He’s the best player in comparison to his era. That doesn’t make him the most talented, nor the best in general. Just Best Buy comparison of the era he lived.
jesse owens ran 10.3 in 1936 and was the fastest man alive, now he would be beat by many high school boys lol, no one ever says owens is the greatest sprinter of all time now do they? best in an era doesn't mean best in history.
His swing is interesting because he gets so much weight moving toward the ball. It's a long swing and it looks like he makes contact with the ball fairly early which might take away any late movement. Ty Cobbs is also interesting because his method of getting the bat moving was to slide his hands together. I have always been impressed with Mark McGwire's swing because it was so compact and so quick.
Don't forget Babe Ruth was incredibly strong,no doubt he would hit in todays game,just like Walter Johnson,Cy Young,Matheson could pitch today,all it takes is an adjustment in mechanics.
How much stronger would he be if he did modern strength and nutrition training? Back in his day baseball players just ate what everyone else was eating, and going to the weight room was just optional.
@@Matt_Fields_29nimally same with modern players that’s a lil exaggerated hitting a baseball is like armwrestling it’s about explosive quick twitch muscle you either have or you don’t a strong hand wrist forearm setup same with baseball and strong tendons that’s why guys like Curtis Granderson can weigh 150lbs while using the heaviest bat in the game hitting tanks
Agree with you completely. Not only the adjustments you mentioned, but give him video scouting, swing analytics, 100 years of coaching/technique refinements and all the advantages players have today he absolutely rakes. The raw skills are clearly there. If you simply pluck him of course he’ll struggle because he wouldn’t have the advantages players have today. Even the training/advancement field he’ll prove why he’s the goat.
Buck O’Neil used to talk about that special sound of ball hitting bat that he only heard three times in his life - Babe Ruth, Josh Gibson, Bo Jackson. That cant be faked. I think he would adjust his stance & timing. Still be special
Big guy for his era, not startlingly so back then and not big at all for today. His big belly and balance and center of gravity were distinctive and the way he tips the bat and starts the swing low and in front seem to use the low-down weight in that belly. What I mostly see is this: the narrow stance and bat almost in front of his belly mean he can watch the ball longer and better adjust his step forward to meet the ball where he thinks it is going to be. When you take a wide stance and have the bat well back there is more power there but it is harder to adapt the path of the swing. Ruth got his power from the heavy bat and weight from hips to sternum. Using a heavy bat Ruth would have had trouble hitting consistently with a wide stance and longer swing.
He'd still be elite but would have to adapt to the game today for certain. He was known for swinging a 54 oz. bat. The initial movements and falling downhill seem exaggerated but are necessary to get that war club moving. The clip you show demonstrates how quick he still was at footstrike.
I love this. Things I noticed: He starts in a softball stance He really slams the back elbow down near his side He comes no where near "squishing the bug" as I was erroneously taught as a teen And his head seems to smoothly go down just a few inches giving him a good look at what's coming..... and then where it goes! Haha! Good stuff buddy!
The swing looks jarring to modern viewers, but as you started to get into around the 8:00 minute mark, after the initial and exaggerated stride, he reaches a completely recognizably modern hitting position. Yes, GHR would need to make adjustments, but not as drastic as people think. And while he would likely strike out more (the man never struck out 100 times in a season), I think the power numbers would remain intact--remember that modern stadiums are significantly smaller. Instead of a .340 80 strikeout player, I imagine a .300 140K version, still hitting 50+HR per year.
Can you analyze Ty Cobb’s swing and unique separated hand grip sometime? He used a thick handled bat and I understand that Cobb used the same bat for almost 10 years. I also read where he was one of the first players to warm up in the on deck circle holding extra bats.
What the expert hasn't explained is the gift of strong wrists and the power origins of Ruth's movement. The wrists are responsible for the bat movement up and down just before and just after the ball is hit. Babe Ruth's wrists were able to adjust that 42 oz. bat very quickly to where the ball ended up, and you can see it by the vertical change of the bat during the contact portion of the swing. And you see the positions of his elbows in relation to his body throughout the motion being close to the body, which shows there is much less "arm swing" to Ruth's motion then most modern batters. Ruth's power came from the compactness of the swing, close to the body and powered by those huge shoulders and the hips, coupled with powerful wrists that could adjust the huge bat as the motion was being completed.
Look at what a powerful twist of the body, he drags his left leg when the swing ends; In addition, almost all the batters raised their leg and guided it in the direction from which the ball was coming; that means that the strike zone was wider; What one would have to ask, could today's hitters hit the ball at that time?
It would be good to show where he was positioned in the batters box. Up front, in the box, was designed to cut off the curve ball BEFORE it broke. Or, positioning yourself in the back of the batter's box would allow you to watch the slider's movement.
Matt, question….. do you think it just happens that he was a pitcher first, hitter second. Its like he implemented heavy pitching mechanics into his swing. Feet close, hip falling down the mound, hands seperate then firing down the mound, only doing it with a bat in his hand. Almost like it was his way of pitching with a bat in his hands….
From what I have read in more than one source, he did settle for a 42 to 45 oz bat in the mid 20's, going a little lighter in his later years. But before settling on the 42oz, he spent years trying different ones, and used a 55oz for a while. "The Sultan of Swat", "The Colossus of Clout", "The Titan of Terror", and "The King of Crash". Great nicknames, but "The Great Bambino" I think came from 1:04 Dude, Babe Ruth was packing.
I think you did a great job dissecting his mechanics. I'm of the opinion that pitchers threw a lot harder back then than we give them credit for. Like today, most pitchers back then were good-sized men, most of whom stood over 6'. Walter Johnson is a good example of a big guy who Cobb and Ruth both said threw heat. He had a huge wind-up and used all of his momentum to whip the ball across the plate. Pro baseball started back about 1880 so by the 1920s it had evolved considerably, something baseball fans today seem to toss aside. I think Ruth, Fox, Gherig, Cobb and all those great hitters would've also crushed it today, maybe more than they did back then because of the easy access modern players have to trainers, weightlifting knowledge, and gym equipment.
the louisville slugger factory has one of his later bats on display with 15-30 ish notches on it for home runs hit and it was a 36 inch 38 ounce bat. so he made some adjustments. you could verify with a phone call. it's in a glass case in the louisville slugger factory downtown louisville. (main factory). ps they get all their wood from a company they bought called larimer and norton. they have like 5 places to cut wood and make the billettes in new york and upstate pennsylvania (white ash) havent kept up with the maple origin. i visited them all back in the day to learn the process and make bats at home as a hobby. they weigh them and grade them in three weights and ship them to louisville kentucky. therw was a lathe guy in louisville and he said they use a kiln to dry the wood now. he said it took the life out of the wood. they used to be air dried in square billettes stacked up for like a year ish and they were NICE. i got and dried and made air dried billettes and antique bats of lengths and weights. they were way better. ps there is a lot harder wood tham maple. maybe too heavy. they used hickory in babe's time and probably both. hickory was used i know for hammer handles and probably shovels and sledgehammers. peace, jim polo pennslyvania
That bat tip probably helps load up some muscle to and increase the bat whip, maybe. I don't know that much about hitting... More about lifting weights. That little heave of the bat would stretch muscles and increase bat speed if the timing was right. I think he'd figure it out. Very interesting video.
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The thing that always impressed me about him is how effortlessly he swings that massive bat while looking like a middle aged dad. Guy was a beast with no training or needles.
Invented the power hitter as well.
He was a big dude. Lol. His hands look like meat hooks.😂
Raw power?
@@yankees29 6'2"" around 215. (when younger)
@@kenkaplan3654 he was one of those barrel chested guys who could actually run pretty good for a big man.
His swing was what what worked in his era. I'd assume he'd adjust to today's pitching. He was naturally gifted to do anything on the diamond
It's like saying jordan wasn't a good 3 point shooter so he couldn't play today. Reality is if he needed to be a good 3 point shooter he would have been.
@@MrFuchew There’s tons of vids of Jordon draining 3’s at will.
That's the key word, ADJUST. Pluck him out of 1927 and drop him in the Yankees lineup tomorrow, he won't hit anything. But give him some time to study and adapt to modern pitching, I think he absolutely could make the adjustment, and would be at least a serviceable hitter, possibly a very good one.
@@johns.8220 exactly. But you know a modern hitter might have problems facing a pitcher from that era for the first time too. Because of all the junk they threw
@@Shinobi33 Maybe, but I think that would be a lot less of an adjustment. The "junk" that pitchers threw back then had a lot of movement, but was very slow, probably in the 70s. And was aided by the fact that baseballs got beat to oblivion over the course of the game, making it harder for the batter to see. But a modern hitter who is used to seeing 95 mph+ fastballs and cutters and 85 mph changeups on a daily basis would likely adapt to older-style pitchers a lot quicker than the other way around.
For me two things stand out at the point of contact Ruth is always is the same position. Ruth is consistent at the point of contact. Secondly Ruth generates so much power when he strides into the swing and gets incredible hip rotation! It’s awesome how much torque Ruth generates with hi# swing! You can read his uniform number on his back on the 3rd base side when Ruth swings!
I got to hold and take two abbreviated swings with a Ruth bat. The Babe Ruth Museum toured around 15 to 20 years ago. They made a stop at PNG field for a AA Curve game (Pirate's AA team).
It was after the game and I engaged with the curator of the display. No one was around. It was an interesting conversation. He sensed I've knocked a few balls around as he was telling me the weight distribution in Ruth's 42oz bat. The majority of weight near the end. He pulled one out and I was BLESSED to have held and taken those 2 easy swings. The bat indeed felt its weight. What was stunning is during the first swing, itgave immediate feedback that the bat felt much lighter with motion. More like a 32 or 33 oz bat. The second swing was more like a 1/3 to 1/2 swing. I had never felt anything like it, nor will I ever. As the swing approached my rear hip, the bat felt incredibly light. The feedback was clear that the more you accelerated with this bat, you are able to drive because of the distribution making the bat feel lighter with motion. Most surreal sensation of countless times taking cuts through my life.
Awesome story
@@jonny-dp2qr Thanks Jonny. Best to you!
[In Napoleon Dynamite voice] Lucky!
Really REALLY cool. what an amazing experience.
@@kenkaplan3654 Thank you Ken. The physical feeling is still with me. Then to think he used it brings chills
He would rake today as well. He’d figure it out and make tweets where needed. The bats are better and lighter, and the baseballs are harder. He’d still be great.
He’d be a menace on Twitter
It would be funny seeing him on tik tok also
Imagine Ruth with that Bonds elbow brace, batting helmet and a letter to MLB Owners explaining ejections / fines for coming up and in on Ruth.
@@jmsd25 "Today I did it. By biggest acheivement in my chosen field of competition. I ate 77 hot dogs. OH CRAP I HAVE A BASEBALL GAME LATER! Hope coach doesn't expect me to try any bunt hits"
@@billysyms5761 EXACTLY!
Even in slow mo the Babe gets the bat through the hitting zone (hip to hip) at an almost indecipherable speed. Amazing. Some people are just meant to do certain things. He was meant to hit a baseball hard and far.
With that heavy of a bat he used its very impressive at the speed he gets it through the zone
Amen
No steroids or hours in the gym. Pure, raw strength.
@@ajwalsh2856 😂 he did used the steroids that were a thing back then. Y’all just blindly follow a guy that you never saw play
He was playing against a bunch of farmers that threw at 70 max. With that swing he would never get a hit at a guy throwing 90
In 1921, Babe had 59 home runs, scored 177 runs and batted in 168 in a 154 game season, and he had an OPS of 1.359. And you're asking if he could hit in today's game? The only thing any athlete can do is dominate everybody in his or her own era, and Ruth did that like nobody else who has ever played baseball. The only other player in a major sport I can think of who might compare for dominating in his era was Don Hutson. He retired with 488 receptions, 7991 receiving yards and 99 receiving touchdowns. The next closest at the time (a guy who retired 2 years later than Hutson) had 288 receptions for 4801 yards and 45 touchdowns. Hutson also won 4 NFL championships in 11 seasons and led the league in interceptions one season. Hutson was a great player on both sides of the ball, and Ruth was on track to make the Hall of Fame as a pitcher when he converted to a full time outfielder because they couldn't keep his bat out of the lineup. They were both basically playing a different game than everybody else of their eras.
When it comes to total domination of their era, Gretzky in hockey is comparable to Ruth, I guess. Can't think of another. There's Pele, perhaps.
...do we want to mention the pitchers he *didn't* face during the 1921 season?
@@josephhouk6703 By the way, the discrimination against black players in baseball and other sports was reprehensible, but given that quotas were clearly in place for years after Jackie Robinson broke the color line (the Red Sox didn't have a black player until 12 years after Robinson), I guess we can pretty much throw out every MLB player prior to 1970 or so.
George was the best pitcher of the 1910s.
@@dorfmanjones Mario Lemiux actually averaged more goals and points per game than Gretzky and it's definitely debatable
To paraphrase that joke:
Person one: "How would Ruth hit today?"
Person two: "He'd average about .290 with twenty-five home runs."
Person one: "You're kidding!"
Person two: "Remember he's over a hundred years old!"
That's about Cobb
Cobb could outfit Joe Biden right now ...even vote for Joe
They keep saying Ruth couldn't hit today ? In these puny stadiums ,he'd be fine,BUT I doubt today's players ,could go back then ,and put up his numbers ,fields with 450 ft+ to center regularly, they couldn't do it,balls darker,no lights.. 🚂 travel
The Babe Ruth stat that I have always loved is in 1920 season; he led the league with 54 home runs, the next closest player was George Sisler with 19.
Absolutely amazing stat!
And only one non-Yankees TEAM hit more than 54 Home Runs - the Phillies. That would be like somebody hitting 240 homers in 2021.
Ruth hit more home runs that year than any other American League team. In 1927, his 60 home runs were more than any AL team other than the rest of his teammates on the Yankees, who combined for 61.
How about the fact that he was hitting more homer runs than entire teams!
He invented the HR as a purposeful approach to scoring runs
I've always wondered if the Babe's stride came from his background as a pitcher. It is as though he is doing a one-for-one counter to the power generating stride of the pitcher.
He copied it from Shoeless Joe Jackson, his favorite player
@@jackruaro Yup. "If it's good enough for Shoeless Joe, it's good enough for me." - Babe Ruth quote.
Like Rocky Marciano’s punch coming from a pitcher’s motion. (Marciano turned to boxing after an injury ended his days as a pitcher.)
That's exactly what he was doing, look for old films from the camps working with Lou Gehrig to train kids at "boys town"
Cobb mentioned in an interview how Ruths' pitching really tied in with his success as a hitter.
I read a couple of articles stating that the Babe ordered SHORTER bats as he aged, as opposed to merely lighter ones. Better leverage. If you look at the Babe's swing, it evolved as he got older. He was more than just a big guy who swung as hard as he could. The Babe adapted with the times!
Great analysis and conclusions. I have had similar discussions with Smart Alec know-it-alls and I’ve never convinced anybody. I grew up watching Willie Mays in San Francisco and I’ve had people tell me that he would be just an average hitter today because of better pitchers today. But, just as you explain here, I have maintained that all great hitters have two things in common: the ability to choose the right pitch to hit and the ability to deliver the bat to the exact spot required to hit the ball squarely. This is not an easy thing to do. The science of pitching and the science of pitching from experts such as you have made each act very, very efficient and eliminated the idiosyncrasies of years gone by, but the ability to see the right pitch and explode in a controlled manner to deliver the bat to a spot no bigger than a 1/2 inch on a 95/hr moving ball is God given magic. All the great hitters have that in common and at the moment of impact, they all look the same. What they do before that moment is irrelevant because it can be adjusted and refined because that’s what you do.
Like today's pitchers are better than Bob Gibson, Tom Seaver, Jim Palmer, Juan Marichal and Ferguson Jenkins; to mention only a few?
@@deepcosmiclove Some of them are. Similar to teh Original Posters Point, Pitching is also about Two things: the ability locate the pitches regardless of speed, and the ability keep the hitter off balance. The pitchers who have done that in any era have found success. Kershaw or Gibson. Clemens or Ohtani. Pedro or DeGrom. Randy or Snell.
The Babe Ruth Museum in Baltimore has a front view video of Babe Ruth's swing...extremely smooth and quick.
Babe Ruth, like any elite player in any era, could play in today's game.
That's what I tend to believe. The truly elite players would be able to adapt to play well in any era
m.th-cam.com/video/uZdv-TtiMkg/w-d-xo.html
The Bambino was said to have used a 54-ounce hickory bat during the early stages of his career.
-Bleacher Report
On avg through his career was a 42 to 46 ounce bat but he had a 54 “Ol Hickory” and at the end of his career was a 36” 38 ounce bat
@@nyc7708ems Yeah okay but look at what he was doing early in his career. The waggle is the difference in slugging .550+ because it is the source of angular momentum. Ruth and Bonds and Ted all waggled and they are in a class by themselves. Jack Mankin is the leading authority on angular momentum and its extremely positive effects on bat speed and barrel accuracy. Ted has a section in his hitting book called Light is Right where he was not well and hit a ball over 400 feet and over the wall barely swinging one of Stan Spence’s toothpick bats.
What wt bat do the players use today? 31oz. I believe he would have made any necessary adjustments because he was driven to out perform his competition. His ego would have pushed him to do whatever it took to be the best.
@@billatkins1026 Yeah you are talking nonsense. As MLB(Major League Baseball) bat regulations require, no baseball bat weighs less than 32 ounces or 2 pounds. In fact, the lightest bats in MLB are actually 2 pounds in weight. Most players choose 33 and 34 ounce bats.
Show a citation for 31 ounce bats in MLB.
Joe Sewell used the same bat his whole career.
Totally agree with your analysis. Anyone who's read THE ART OF HITTING .300 by Charlie Lau knows that when the Babe finished his stride his feet, hips, shoulders, head, and hands are exactly where they should be. He hit .342 lifetime and played much of his career when the spitball was legal so he would be able to handle today's pitching although, as you said, perhaps not as well.
Great book!! So mad i lost my copy years ago. Much better analysis than most of these internet dudes.
What stands out to me is the amount of hip rotation he gets. At end of his swing his belly button is facing almost towards the dugout.
That is the key. Fast hands and get your hips through. Good eyesight also helps.
@@misein1 Ruth had a very loud set up, but he had every single thing you need to be an excellent hitter.
Your “running start “ analogy is I think spot on . It’s like the difference between pitching from a full windup vs the stretch. The thing that would make this difficult would be adjusting to off speed stuff but they say the game slows down for great players and it’s hard to argue that a man who’s name is synonymous with greatness wasn’t one of the greatest players!
He saw the ball very well out of the pitchers hand apparently
The amount of homeruns he hit in that era would be like someone hitting 80 in a season and 1200 in their career. He was in a different world than everyone else. Oh and he hit .342
The coil ... the big stride ... the exaggerated move ... need SUPER QUICK hands. ... Do all kinds of exercises for the hands and wrists ... swing a bat weighted at the end, (weighted only enough that the bat could "almost" be used in a game, and quit as soon as the bat drops below the swing plane due to tiredness. Musial kept soft squeeze balls in both jacket pockets and squeezed them constantly, over and over. The heavy dead weights don't do this. Tim Tebow was strong as hell, he lifted heavy dead weights everyday, but his hands were too slow. Did he EVER pull a fastball on the inside black? ... (hint ... never!!!) ... plenty of Tebow baseball you tubes to prove it.
He out homered whole teams!
And during an era when the ball had to LAND fair to be a home run. No foul poles yet!
Oh and before he decided to be a good hitter he was the games best pitcher. I think the most important skill he had was the skill to adapt.
@@donlawson3330 And there were no WALLS that helped the hitters get doubles and triples like they do now...players back then could literally go up against the short fence and snag balls that are home runs and turn them into outs. Now , they have 15 feet of wall behind them and outfielders cannot navigate jumping up against that wall...balls that should be caught now, aren't
What I see here, and impresses me, is that in the middle of all this stuff going on he adjusted to hit a ball that is inside. So he has a huge bat, he's moving before he knows where the pitch will be, yet he still manages tuck his arms in to get the bat closer to his body mid swing. I've never cared about his swing, but seeing that adjustment makes me think he'd be just fine in today's game because if the bat is where the ball is going to be then you'll hit it, no matter what era you're in.
Georgie would have access to today's sports science (no bottles of whiskey, 12 chili dogs, and 4 groupies during the seventh inning stretch) as well as hitting coaches to adjust to today's game. He may be Barry Bonds, but I think he would be great.
They knew that was unhealthy for the body even then, he just didn’t care, and likely wouldn’t in the modern game either. Which is why he’d be at best Tim Tebow as a hitter
I agree with everything till you compared a drunk to a cheater. Bonds was great, don't get me wrong. But he deliberately cheated baseball. Not for any rules, or whatever, but simply for greed. He was jealous people thought KGJ was better. Sorry but people are gonna think that when KGJ is just as good and not a complete asshole to people. Bonds is a horrible human being along with cheating. So I hope thst piece of shit never gets in the HoF. Bonds, Clemens, Giambi, Rodriguez, Canseco, McGuire, Palmiero, Sosa, and everyone else proven to take steroids to deliberately enhance their performance, yeah they can all get fucked.
@@cptsparklfingerz9210 Clemens never tested positive, was cleared of perjury, and even Canseco admitted naming him was just because of his performance and not because he actually knew. Sosa failed a test in 2003 that was known to give many false positives and was mishandled by the test giver. Steroids were known to be used as far back as the 60s. Why isn't anyone looking at Nolan Ryan?
@@cptsparklfingerz9210 also, Ruth at the very minimum tried to cheat. He even tried to inject himself with sheep testicles. Amphetamines we're a thing in that time also.
@@pohorex6834 great players would be great players in any era. It is the mediocre players that would be weeded out.
I’m on the fence with this argument. No doubt today’s pitchers have a velocity advantage, however, they also have lower seams, mounds, stricter foreign substance policy and scrutiny ect. Cobb had to contend with the dead ball era, which provided a distinct advantage to the pitcher while simultaneously endangering the hitter. I mean, those dudes were swinging at black baseballs.
it would be an unbelievable adjustment for any of today’s stars to step in the box against a cy young just as well as it would babe staring down Pedro Martinez.
Fun to think about though, Thanks for the content Matt!
I agree. I make a similar argument with people regarding Basketball in the 60's compared to today. Wilt Chamberlain would struggle with greater defenders if he played today, but Michael Jordan would also struggle if he had to play in heavy canvas sneakers (Chuck Taylor Converse) and had to dribble with his hand on top of the ball.
@@jongordon7914
Hi......Wilt Chamberlain weighed 275, out power lifted Arnold Schwarzenegger, was a top collegiate track sprinter and high jumper, you name it, he did it better than everybody.
please name me a current NBA center that can run a 9.5 hundred yard sprint, bench press over 500 pounds and jump a foot over the backboard.
@@Instramark You forgot that he could also lift up a car and throw it and shoot a spider web from his palm. Yikes! You're getting caught up in the folklore and urban myths.
Wilt wasn't 275, he was 300+. He literally says that himself. Don't go by what's listed on paper. No, he couldn't jump a foot over the backboard. I'm not even convinced he could touch the top of it. A foot over the backboard would be 14 feet. And no, he couldn't outlift Schwarzenegger. You're conflating so many different stories. Arnold said Wilt was strong, and he was, but he was talking about triceps extensions. If you really believe he could run the 100yd dash in 9.5 seconds, I don't know what to say. Wilt was an incredible player. One of the best ever. But there's no way he would put up the same numbers today against teams that played better help defense. Same goes for Jordan playing in an era where he couldn't travel and carry the ball.
Babe’s era had a higher pitching mound. I’d bet my life the speed was the same
@@jongordon7914 --Wilt playing today in an era of help defense just means he would lead the league in assists!
He's catching the ball way in front of the plate and his torque gave him his amazing power.
That and the 44 ounce bat
The Yankees started using numbers on their uniforms in 1929. So, assuming this fact Ruth had some great years from 1929 to 32. The youngest he would be in this film would be 34 years old. In 1932 Ruth hit 41 HR and batted .341 at 37 years old. Point being that his technique was honed by this time. It would be interesting to see his swing prior to 1929. Thanks, good work.
The front of their road uniforms read YANKEES until 1930. In 1931 they switched to NEW YORK.
And the only Yankee player to be the only one in their history to wear a certain number?
4 Gehrig...he was first and last to wear it.
No other Ball player can state that.
Don't have much video of slender, fast, athletic Ruth. He didn't always have that body shape, that's just how he was when video became a more common thing.
Ruth will rake in any era. I can't believe there could be any debate.
I will concede if he hopped in a time machine and was entered into a contemporary game to pinch hit, he'd likely fair poorly.
But he's the man who literally hanged baseball. He's a natural hitter. Giving him some time to work on his hitting, and it's GOAT again.
But more to the point, were he born and raised in our era, his entire approach would be different. We can pretend pitching back then was a joke, but it wasn't. Babe faced oodles of cheese and today, he'd face far less cheese. Not to mention, were he to arrive in a time machine, pitchers would be in awe and intimidated, thus pitching accordingly. Simply put, he isn't just another player, or simply a great hitter of his era - he was the greatest hitter of his era and again, single-handedly changed the entire nature of the sport. The game has changed a lot, not only since his day, but it has changed a lot in a short time - which could lead someone to suggest Tony Gwynn couldn't hit today's pitchers.
Of course Gwynn could. Same with the Babe.
yes his swing is so heavy and vulnerable because of the size of the bat he chose to swing. to get all that weight around, he had to make a big motion, as you said. at the time, he knew he could hit the speeds the pitchers were throwing with any size bat, so he chose the heaviest he could possibly get through the zone. but in today's game, i think he could downsize his bat, shorten up a little bit, and be just fine. he was a professional hitter, maybe the best ever, so i trust that he'd find a way to adapt.
He has the raw talent. Adjustment might be key.
Dude he was swinging a club. With a light modern bat he would crush everything
And imagine if he were in better condition.
He learned his swing from Father Mathias at the orphanage as a boy, so not from Joe Jackson. He had far superior eye sight, coordination, hand strength, wrist strength and forward weight shift. His follow through was legendary. He would smack the hell out of any pitcher in any era - with the heavy bat and without much adjustment.
Youre right
He definitely copied from shoeless Joe babe admitted this himself
Great analysis, Matt, thanks for this. I agree with many here that Ruth would have made adjustments. Like most great athletes, he was very smart about the game he played. When he got in a slump, he would even go behind the plate during batting practice-he had been a left-handed catcher at St. Mary's at times-just to get a better feel for the pitches. He spoke to sportswriters with great intelligence and in some detail-about his swing.
And yes, he did use a 54-oz bat for some years, AND he bunted safely for hits as many as 10 times in one season.
Would he have hit .340 over 21 years? Almost certainly not. Would have struck out over 100 times in a season? Almost certainly so. But he might also have hit over 1,000 home runs on his career.
Most of the parks he played in had fences at greater distances than they do today. If there was an overflow crowd, they often put fans in the outfield, roped them off, and called anything hit over that rope a double. For a time there was even a rule that, if you hit the ball out of the park, the ump could whether it would have landed foul or not. Of course, this basically cost ONLY Babe Ruth home runs at the time.
That's not even a real game Babe Ruth swing. That looks like a pepper or some kind of fungo goofing around swing. Look at one of the Babe's real game swings. It's a mechanical thing of natural beauty. Babe had a great natural coil, going straight down with his first movement increasing the distance the bat has to travel so he'd gain as much speed/force as possible, then he was able to effortlessly fully uncoil quickly with full arm extension and powerful bat angle in his hands. Babe was swinging more with his core then his hands because of his arm extension and extreme bat angle. He was using launch angle 100 years ago. Flawlessly.
Mark Tito, I agree with most of what you wrote except for the part about extension. Babe didn’t extend his back arm into the hit like so many players do today. His back arm maintains a 90 degree bend through contact and doesn’t straighten until well after contact is made and into his follow through. Players today are taught to halt their rotation and extend their arms. Instructors are focused on teaching certain movements and results which is why we don’t see many natural swings like Ruth or Griffey or other greats anymore.
It's pre-game batting practice
That explains why they had a good shot of it. No camera person with a giant 1920s camera is going to stand that close during the live game and the zoom lenses weren't thst great.
re watch the first couple of swings and you can see him swinging his other bat. I cannot unsee this
Yeah, me also. Time to tie this into the recent "wearing a cup" discussion.
Jesus babe is packing heat
This. Lol.
Hilarious . Clearly the Little Bambino was also swinging for the fences.
I watched a video of Ty Cobb's swing, as we know he help his hands apart, but once he stated his swing the top hand slid down and formed a regular grip. The rest of the swing looked "normal" and yes Cobb could hit it today's game. I agree they would need to make adjustments, but Cobb could still hit, 367 lifetime BA good no but still damn good.
Split grips look so cool
Great comment. When Cobb was asked what he would hit in 1955, he said ..
.290. Really, only .290? The game is that good now? Cobb said no, it's because I am 70 years old!
Cobb what probably hit over .370 in today's game if they shifted him
Bunt single,steal 2nd steal 3rd...score 160 runs w 120 steals...
And he d strike out maybe 15 x.
He falls forward to set his momentum so as to not allow the ball to push him back or zap his strength thru the ball. The way he whips the bat forward and around, increasing velocity and angular momentum thru the zone, by pulling his lead elbow up and back. Great footage. Ichiro had a similar style actually, he leaned forward during the pitcher's wind up getting a head start.
He hit against some of the best pitching ever including scuffing, cutting and using foreign substances on the balls.
not even close to the best pitching hahaha
hey hahaha guy nobody will ever hit 104 Hr in one year again like the Babe did
@@my2l Wrong
@@GregHinz-jt6nq
Those pitchers 100 years ago were all on c0ke and speed, and putting snot and who knows what else on the ball
Babe Ruth hit against glover Cleveland Alexander, lefty Grove, lefty gomez , Walter johnson etc etc
Great analysis, Mr. A!
With the modern tools that players have at their disposal today, The Babe would be every bit as good as he was in his own Era.
He also was an awesome pitcher, which had to be a real advantage as a hitter. He would still have that today.
Concerning an unusual stance, many of the greats, including Musial, Ichiro, Carew, Carl Yastremski, and so many others had their unique stance. The great ones make it work.
Babe Ruth’s swing is the most fundamentally correct swing ever. Mainly from his front leg stride starting location (all the way back). That puts all the weight on his back hip and gives him the maximum distance and energy moving forward. Doesn’t get any better than that.
Absolutely. He got his whole body into the hit. His mechanics would dominate the game today. Hitting has regressed for many reasons. Lighter bats are a big part of it.
@@kaneman23 Lighter bats because the ball comes so fast. You couldn't swing a 42-ounce bat in today's MLB.
No, it's not. He struck out more than anyone during his era. With all the things going on in his swing, he would strike out 200 times in today's MLB.
@@RatedRex1 as far as the kinetic energy he creates. He starts with both legs together and a bat tip. As far as energy creation goes, you can’t make more than that.
@@RatedRex1 Really bad argument. You're using technique of today vs. equipment of his era. Ruth would be swinging a 35 oz bat (sorta like the bat Odor uses) but with much more power. His swing would be quicker and I'm sure a career .360 hitter (Babe Ruth) would "probably" figure out a quicker method for delivering his stance.
He'd be a Cecil (or Prince) Fielder. Really big guy meant to hit homers and 115 mph line drives to the gaps.
I'm sure Babe Ruth would adapt to todays biggest stuff.
His footwork in this clip reminds me a lot of Wil Myers, the trail foot sliding forward at the end because of the weight transfer and the pure momentum of the swing.
Great hitters are big, strong, and most importantly stay in hitting zone for a long time. Babe Ruth demonstrates all of this. Therefore, yes, his swing is an elite swing. Clearly has good front side mechanics allowing his knob to work up early and and create backward barrel bath or swivel. I think people are misled by the barrel tip because he does achieve good early connection at toe tap. He’s using mechanics that I see many great hitters in today’s game don’t realize they have. Like Trout and Arod thinking they are swinging down to the ball. No they are not swinging down to the ball.
Nothing wrong with his swing. He copied Joe Jackson who, if playing today, would be the hands down best player in either League.
I'm seeing strong fast wrists. He keeps his hands close to the body. Not a lot of arm extension. May in part be related to the location of the pitches, but it is interesting that that's the way Hank Aaron generated power also. I'm guessing if you swing 42 ounces, your wrists will get awfully strong sooner or later.
His swing reminds me of the big striding swings you see in power hitting slow pitch softball players.
Okay let's get one thing straight straight it comes to the Golden Age of Baseball. Babe Ruth was a professional baseball player. Baseball has about around since as early as 1847. The game as changed and players have adapted over the course of 180 years. The Babe adapted to his abilities as a pitcher to a hitter. Something people have struggled with doing since even before him. To say Ruth couldn't compete today is no different than saying today's ball players couldn't compete in those days either. People these days say this stuff like they think they know what they're talking about but they clesrly don't. Theh didn't play in the 20s n 30s. Anyways, Ruth is the greatest Baseball player of all time. There will never be another Babe Ruth, period. But the Babe could definitely have adapted to today's game. Today's players take care of their bodies much better and if Ruth went thru the training and health care of today's Baseball, he'd be even better than what he was. No, i do not believe the Babe Ruth we know n love would be successful in today's game, but an adaptive Babe Ruth would DOMINATE. Walter Johnson was throwing 100mph. So the Babe has a taste of thst anyways. But notice how the whole "everyone is throwing 100mph" arguments stop when you bring up a players abilities to adspt. Today's players had to adapt to it. Everyone today throwing 100mph only started AFTER Aroldis Chapman broke the record. He's still playing. People have adapted to him n everyone else throwing 100mph, so why can't Babe Ruth? He could have definitely adapted to today's game. You don't get called the GOAT for nothing.
May I ask, why you assume Walter Johnson threw 100 mph regularly in games back then?
Ruth is an icon..but definitely not the best player of all time.
Even small dudes are capable of throwing 100 regularly, form is everything
There are a lot of wives tales that come from that golden age of baseball. I do not believe Johnson was throwing 100 mph back then. I also don’t believe Ruth hit that one ball 660 feet or whatever it was in Tampa.
@@Jacobthekid28 because he plays a lot of MLB the Show. Everyone from back then threw 102 with outlier.
Barry bonds tilted his bat and his toe tap is somewhat similar to him starting close with his legs then striding. Bonds would start wide, bringing the front leg back then stride out.
Babe has the greatest swing of all time. His movements are part of what made him the greatest. Give a young player a heavy wood bat and they will learn to swing with similar movements as they learn how to recruit their big muscles and get their body into the hit. Today they use lighter bats and never get these movements ingrained into their swing. Their position at launch and contact are also different. You don’t see players today getting as much hand depth and they’re not as connected at contact. Now everyone says pitching is too dominant for these mechanics and they wouldn’t work today. Those who believe this don’t understand those movements were also his timing mechanism.
This was really cool! Thanks for doing this! Like you said, if you get rid of the big pump and forward stride, it’s the same stroke.
Another interesting question...Would a modern-day player have been able to hit back in the 1920's? No batting helmet, no batting gloves, no shin guard, no elbow armor, and pitchers willing to throw at the batters' heads. My guess is that most 2020 era players would not have lasted two games against the normal 1925 era pitcher.
Don't forget the heavy wool uniforms. Much better beer though!
Plus fewer off days, only day games, travel by train, nowhere near the advanced equipment to help recover, spit balls, balls used more, bats less scientifically designed...
Also the strike zone was knees to shoulders.
I tried to hit exactly like the Babe a few times and what I found was his setup always had me off balance. When you start with both feet close together then stride toward the pitcher with your front hip you are essentially letting your body fall forward and breaking the fall when you land on your lead foot. So many things can go wrong and you likely end up with bad weight transfer which leads to stumbling or falling down after completing swings or when you swing and miss. Sometimes the Babe would either spin out of control or fall on his bottom when he swung and missed due to not having the proper balance in his stance.
If he played today he would use a 33-ounce bat and stand with his feet spaced no more than shoulder width apart. He would wave the barrel forward like Barry Bonds did as the pitcher is getting set to deliver then hold it steady crouching slightly as he prepared to hit. He would stride forward creating upper and lower body separation allowing his hips and legs to drive the barrel through the hitting zone to contact with the ball.
The Babe definitely would not hit in today's game using the batting setup from his era. I have no doubt he could adjust and be a dangerous and feared modern MLB hitter.
Very good analysis and conclusion Coach Matt….I would whole heartedly agree with this….look what subtle adjustments took Jose Batista from a mediocre player to a home run killing machine….👍🏻💪🏻 ⚾️ 🇺🇸
The "negative move" or "loading" phase of his overall swing is his own, as it is with any good hitter. However, as his front foot touches and his hands begin to launch the bat toward the ball, the important rotation phase of his swing begins. This where biomechanics and physics kick in and he looks strikingly like every other good hitter. When critiquing a swing, one must isolate the loading phase from the actual swing itself. Hitters personalize what they do during their stance and loading in order to be comfortable and prepare for rotation. Once rotation begins, physics dictates what must happen to be able to effectively hit a ball. To be a superior hitter your body must figure out the physics. Most folks look at Babe's swing and just see the strange stuff he does prior to rotation. What counts is what he does during rotation. Babe would absolutely be able to hit well in today's environment.
He loads the bat just as Dick Allen, Ted Williams and Barry Bonds did and others do. He builds bat speed and power by getting the bat going. He'd be more than fine in todays game as the level of coaching has been specialized AND the money has become at such a level that I suspect he'd behave quite a bit better on the dietary agenda. He'd have had to hit the weights a bit and do some conditioning. Modern day players seldom get fat or come to camp out of shape anymore. It used to be common for them to get to spring training fat and out of shape.
Well said. Been loving MLB for 60 years. The lore of the present day game is absent. Too many games and all under the microscope. Just drenched with it.
I like the days of the daily sports page and the box scores, a copy of Smith and Street's season preview and the yearly copy of Who's Who in Baseball......and the Game of the Week. All you need.
@@Instramark Wouldn't hurt the MLB game to cancel about 10 franchises, and set them up as the new AAA level for the league. Talent just isn't there to support all these MLB teams today.
I remember an interview with Henry Aaron when he was closing in on Ruth's career HR record. Aaron was handed the bat Ruth used in 1927 which is too long and heavy under today's rules. He took a couple of swings with it and remarked about the strength of Ruth to get the bat around on pitches. He also pointed out that most of the bat was solid hitting area. Keep in mind, Ted Williams is the man who started the current trend of fat barreled, thin-handled bats and emphasis on bat speed instead of strength.
When Williams played [40s & 50s] there were a lot more fireballing pitchers with 90+mph fastballs than there were in the 20s when Ruth played, so bat speed was more important.
There's no rules about bat size in MLB. Know what you are talking about before you leave a comment.
Very analogy Matt.
I thought The Babe was a big strong guy , that can crutch the ball far.
Obviously, if you plucked him out of 1927 and stuck him in the Yankees lineup tomorrow, he wouldn't hit anything; modern pitching is far ahead of where it was in his day. But I absolutely believe he could adapt and adjust to the modern game given enough time, and be at least a serviceable hitter if not a very good one. He absolutely had the strength and the hand-eye coordination to be a good hitter in today's game, and if honed with modern training and nutrition he'd fit into a Major League roster.
Any dude who hits .342 lifetime with 714 dingers could hit in any era.
Bingo.
hit in any era doesn't mean putting up the same numbers in any era, babe's numbers would tank if he played today.
@@my2l there's a chance his numbers would be lower, but there's no chance he wouldn't be elite. If I had to guess, I'd say he'd hit .310-.320 with 600-650 home runs. Take a look at him against Walter Johnson. Everyone pretty much agrees Walter Johnson was throwing around 100 miles an hour. Babe hit .280 off of him with a .389 on base percentage and a home run every 15 at bats. I don't feel like figuring it out but I would imagine his OPS off him was close to 1.000 because he also had 8 doubles and two triples in 107 AB.
@@rhull3939 no one agrees that johnson threw 100 lol, in fact most historians think he threw 88 topping 91 which was elite for his era. MLB average was only 87 in 1999 which was in the middle of the steroid era and 70+ years after johnson's time with improved training and mechanics. If you know anything about pitching mechanics you can easily tell that johnson didn't throw 100. Babe might hit .250 with 20 homers IF he makes major adjustments and ditch the bad habits, sports have evolved so much in 100 years it's not nearly comparable. Jesse owens would be smoked by many high school boys today lol.
@@my2l I've heard this argument before and I completely disagree. Ruth had elite talent. Once in a lifetime talent. So far above and beyond players of his day it was silly. He was never in the type of physical shape that players are now. He literally never pushed his limitations. If he played in this time, I'd bet my house that he'd still be in the top ten greatest hitters with access to today's training methods and technology and equipment. What would have happened if he was in the 90s and 00's and did steroids like everyone else. Not condoning that but it worked for Bonds and so many others. It's impossible to think that he'd be anything but well, well above average.
I started doing the same load up in Slowpitch softball. Its taken my power to another level
These type of debates are one of the greatest thing about baseball, could 'all time great' play in todays game? Fun to debate.
I helped several young batters by loading up on every pitch. Treat every pitch as hittable. That's a head start. When you see its hittable, continue your swing, if not, hold off. By doing that, you have time to better see the ball.
Ted Williams said no one would hit .400 again because of the slider. All we can do is look at the raw mechanics. Excellent analysis.
I know this is a two year old comment, but did they not have sliders back then? Is it really such a new invention?
@@joecoolmccall In the 40s they did not. He made this quote in the 70s I believe.
I play ‘recreated’ baseball the way it was played in the 1800s. Bats were much bigger; as stated you need to do something to get it going. Pitching was also slower.
Would love a break down of Hammering Hank's swing.
Agree 1000%. I've been a huge Ruth fan for over 50 years, but he developed his "Happy Gilmore" swing to hit 1920s pitching that averaged < 3 k per 9 innnings pitched! (As Stengel would have said, "You can look it up!") No way they were throwing 95.
Couldn’t help but notice the damn snake in his britches during that loop of his swing in the first minute of the video 😂 No surprise, the Babe was hung like a horse. Must have added some bonus momentum to his hips getting around/through the ball.
I was looking for this comment. Its hard to miss
I have adapted his swing and with his style for my own style. It allows you to swing a lot of weight very quickly, which is good for long ball hitting. The hardest part is getting the timing down, but once you get it, you can easily catch up to any pitching. I have been able to catch up to D1 fastpitch girls playing when i get the timing down
Also would like to point out that Ruth played a big part of his career during the dead ball era and hit homeruns despite this handicap.
Ruth and the 1919 Black Sox are the very reason for using a live ball.
He was only a hitter for. 1 yeer in desd ball era hit. 27 home runs
There is another video up showing Ruth in the NL at the end of his career hitting against Hubbell, and I thought it showed his swing much closer to dead level than the very moderate uppercut in this video. Agree? I got the idea from my reading that the power hitter swing goes back to Wagner and from there was improved by Jackson, Ruth, and Williams. Is there enough ancient film around to compare the swings of those four? Others who might be good studies for power swing technique might be Foxx, Greenberg, Kiner, Kingman and Pujols. I guess I'd like to see how the swings of good hitters who hit with power differed from the swings of hitters who successfully specialized in homers.
Best player to ever step on a diamond
The info is probably out there, but I wonder what velocity he was seeing back in the day and did they change much from his early career to mid and later years. Excellent analysis. Well done and entertaining idea/video. Thanks.
Pitchers can't do as much as other athletes to throw all that much harder. A little but not all that much. Most can't throw close to one-hundred for more five innings, and the ones that do? Half are out with injuries the next year. Tom Seaver? Never had arm issues. He was a "drop and drive" pitcher. It was ALL in his legs. He did have sone minor sciatica issues but only cost him a few months in his tenth season or so.Yeah, the year he struck out 200 for like the eighth straight time (a record). I think his season ended affer the 201 strikeout. Pitchers tire late in games when it is their "legs" that tire. That's why they do those wind-sprints in the outfield during batting-practice .
I find that in any clip from before like 1975, the swings look really slow. I assume it's just because the bat is heavy.
Watch old football or basketball clips and they look like they’re running in slow motion sometimes. It’s a camera thing
I think you’re both right. Less frames and heavier bats. Bats today are lighter and hit better
There’s a lot of swing from different players I like from their own batting stances. My favorite batting stance of all time is Julio Franco, I love to imitate it for a long time and i’m also a switch hitter. I also tried to do Mickey Tettleton’s as well
Speaking of Julio Franco. It makes me think of Jim Kaat. And the reason for that is Jim Kaat is the only pitcher to face both Ted Williams and Julio Franco. Williams started his career in 1939 and Franco retired in 2007. That's a 68 year gap. And Ted Williams faced many of the same pitchers Babe Ruth faced. And at the time of Franco's retirement in 2007, there are still players playing today that played in 2007.
So when people talk about how certain players from certain eras can't compete in the modern game, I say BS.
We are talking about the greatest hitter of all time. I think bat weight would be the only adjustment he would make in todays game. Ruth's eye was phenomenal has he walked over 700 more times that striking out. The only player comparable to him in 2022 would be Juan Soto.
Love to see a breakdown of Paul Molitor's swing, probably the fastest most compact I ever saw in person
Great hitters are great hitters, regardless of their mechanics. A great hitter from yesteryear, Royals' legend George Brett, comes to mind. He became a disciple of a guy name Walt Hriniak, and developed a looping yet smooth swing that others tried but were unsuccessful. Hriniak's hitting theories were largely proven ineffective, but Brett was able to succeed with them (or in spite of them) simply because of great ability.
Brett was a disciple of Charlie Lau, and George Brett had a beautiful swing
@@careygreen4274 You may be right, but my point is that I could have been Brett's hitting coach and he would have raked. And I don't know jack s#$t about hitting.
Some years back I knew a gentleman named Luther "Red" Harvel. Red was a retired scout for the As and I believe one or two other teams. He also had a lengthy, mostly minor league career, as a player including one season with Cleveland in 1928 where he played against Ruth. He was very impressed with the man, and not just his hitting. He commented that he was faster afoot than some might think and that is was not a good idea to challenge his arm. He was of the opinion that Ruth could have starred in the game of the 1980s when I knew him. He was a lot of fun to talk to.
The question is, could today's hitters hit back then? All day games, no specific batter's eye. Legal spitballs, dirty baseballs, unreal changeups, junkballers.
Spiteful pitchers.
Didn't need analytics, only 8 teams per league, all weaknesses were known.
Thanks Matt for showing this and not crapping on the Babe. I have been watching MLB since 1967 and today's game is mostly unbearable to watch. Softball uppercut swings, 200 strikeouts, possible robo ump, replay, having to hear about the money endlessly, season way too long, playoffs unbearable and the worst of the worst...the DH...
Matt, I rarely watch games anymore unless it's Bryce Harper, instead I just watch your channel when I need a fix!
As much as I love the games history but there is no comparison. I personally think Babe Ruth doesn’t even make it to the big leagues today. I think a a .220 hitter today is a superstar back then.
@@vladimirlopez7840 I agree, the pitching it just so much better today than back then. There's no way any of those hitters in that era could even touch today's pitching. Babe Ruth never hit against professional pitchers, he hit against farmers
Daniel Moore Vladimir Lopez, Pitching was different then but not necessarily worse. Remember the pitching mound was 15 inches high, not 10, the strike zone was letters to the knees, foreign substances were common, the bats were heavier, the ball wasn’t juiced, and the stadiums were larger.
There was a dead-ball era for a reason. I doubt any of today’s hitters could do any better against 1920s pitching than the average player from that era did. That makes the babe’s numbers even more impressive not less.
In 1920 he lead the league in HR with 54. 2nd place was 19. GOAT.
@@vladimirlopez7840you can literally smell the nasty generation Z sweat coming off your forehead dude. I grew up in the 90s and 00s. Nobody back then said such utterly asinine statements such as the ones you typed out there.
It’s no wonder people from every other generation can relate to one another and then there’s you guys… who literally nobody can stand.
@@danielmoore8695you too. All your knowledge comes from video games and dumb 🍑 ESPN commentators oohing and aahing over exit velocity and spin rate. Never mind the fact that these things weren’t measured way back when, but let’s just state as a fact that they’re much better now because someone paid to market the game to r3tarded gen Z kids said so.
I'm pretty sure this clip was from a batting practice in Brooklyn from 1931. Ruth started his career swinging a 52-54 oz bat. Over the years, he gradually went down in weight until he was swinging a 38 oz bat when he retired. He used a 44 oz bat to hit 60 HRs in 1927, and was usually swinging a 42 oz bat at the time of this film .
By the time he was swinging a 38 oz bat, he had shortened his swing up considerably and it wasn't too much different than you'd see today.
That's like swinging with a donut on the average MLB bat today. There's another YT channel with the youtuber swinging a replica of one of Ruth's 40 oz bats, along with replica bats of Honus Wagner, Shoeless Joe Jackson and Mickey Mantle. Pretty cool to see the guy really stuggle until he decided to mimic Ruth's swing, and use contact swings to hit line drives with the Wagner bat.
The notion that great athletes would not 'adapt' to the modern game is ridiculous. Babe Ruth would be an All Star today as well.
I didn't play for long time, just some years during my youth, but my longest homerun was trying to emulate this swing, i used to open my legs and put my bat very back over my shoulders, i remember a pitcher throwing the ball very fast so i decided to put my legs next to each other and the bat almost in front of me, so i just went against the ball and the result was a monster homerun by the center field!!!.
According to Baseball Reference, Babe Ruth has the highest W.A.R. in baseball history. Thereby, he is the best player in MLB's history.
He’s the best player in comparison to his era. That doesn’t make him the most talented, nor the best in general. Just Best Buy comparison of the era he lived.
jesse owens ran 10.3 in 1936 and was the fastest man alive, now he would be beat by many high school boys lol, no one ever says owens is the greatest sprinter of all time now do they? best in an era doesn't mean best in history.
His swing is interesting because he gets so much weight moving toward the ball. It's a long swing and it looks like he makes contact with the ball fairly early which might take away any late movement. Ty Cobbs is also interesting because his method of getting the bat moving was to slide his hands together. I have always been impressed with Mark McGwire's swing because it was so compact and so quick.
Don't forget Babe Ruth was incredibly strong,no doubt he would hit in todays game,just like Walter Johnson,Cy Young,Matheson could pitch today,all it takes is an adjustment in mechanics.
How much stronger would he be if he did modern strength and nutrition training?
Back in his day baseball players just ate what everyone else was eating, and going to the weight room was just optional.
@@Matt_Fields_29nimally same with modern players that’s a lil exaggerated hitting a baseball is like armwrestling it’s about explosive quick twitch muscle you either have or you don’t a strong hand wrist forearm setup same with baseball and strong tendons that’s why guys like Curtis Granderson can weigh 150lbs while using the heaviest bat in the game hitting tanks
Agree with you completely. Not only the adjustments you mentioned, but give him video scouting, swing analytics, 100 years of coaching/technique refinements and all the advantages players have today he absolutely rakes. The raw skills are clearly there.
If you simply pluck him of course he’ll struggle because he wouldn’t have the advantages players have today. Even the training/advancement field he’ll prove why he’s the goat.
Babe Ruth was so far ahead of his time, he would hit 97 homers every year.
Buck O’Neil used to talk about that special sound of ball hitting bat that he only heard three times in his life - Babe Ruth, Josh Gibson, Bo Jackson. That cant be faked. I think he would adjust his stance & timing. Still be special
Swarber bats identical to Babe Ruth
I agree completely with this
Yes i brought up Schwarber too. Except Ruth was a better hitter for average.
Pictures in his era we're up on it elevated Mound which allowed them to put the ball at greater angles
Wow, that’s such a great analysis. Great job
Big guy for his era, not startlingly so back then and not big at all for today. His big belly and balance and center of gravity were distinctive and the way he tips the bat and starts the swing low and in front seem to use the low-down weight in that belly. What I mostly see is this: the narrow stance and bat almost in front of his belly mean he can watch the ball longer and better adjust his step forward to meet the ball where he thinks it is going to be. When you take a wide stance and have the bat well back there is more power there but it is harder to adapt the path of the swing. Ruth got his power from the heavy bat and weight from hips to sternum. Using a heavy bat Ruth would have had trouble hitting consistently with a wide stance and longer swing.
He'd still be elite but would have to adapt to the game today for certain. He was known for swinging a 54 oz. bat. The initial movements and falling downhill seem exaggerated but are necessary to get that war club moving. The clip you show demonstrates how quick he still was at footstrike.
I love this. Things I noticed:
He starts in a softball stance
He really slams the back elbow down near his side
He comes no where near "squishing the bug" as I was erroneously taught as a teen
And his head seems to smoothly go down just a few inches giving him a good look at what's coming..... and then where it goes! Haha!
Good stuff buddy!
The swing looks jarring to modern viewers, but as you started to get into around the 8:00 minute mark, after the initial and exaggerated stride, he reaches a completely recognizably modern hitting position. Yes, GHR would need to make adjustments, but not as drastic as people think. And while he would likely strike out more (the man never struck out 100 times in a season), I think the power numbers would remain intact--remember that modern stadiums are significantly smaller. Instead of a .340 80 strikeout player, I imagine a .300 140K version, still hitting 50+HR per year.
Can you analyze Ty Cobb’s swing and unique separated hand grip sometime? He used a thick handled bat and I understand that Cobb used the same bat for almost 10 years. I also read where he was one of the first players to warm up in the on deck circle holding extra bats.
What the expert hasn't explained is the gift of strong wrists and the power origins of Ruth's movement. The wrists are responsible for the bat movement up and down just before and just after the ball is hit. Babe Ruth's wrists were able to adjust that 42 oz. bat very quickly to where the ball ended up, and you can see it by the vertical change of the bat during the contact portion of the swing. And you see the positions of his elbows in relation to his body throughout the motion being close to the body, which shows there is much less "arm swing" to Ruth's motion then most modern batters. Ruth's power came from the compactness of the swing, close to the body and powered by those huge shoulders and the hips, coupled with powerful wrists that could adjust the huge bat as the motion was being completed.
Look at what a powerful twist of the body, he drags his left leg when the swing ends; In addition, almost all the batters raised their leg and guided it in the direction from which the ball was coming; that means that the strike zone was wider; What one would have to ask, could today's hitters hit the ball at that time?
It would be good to show where he was positioned in the batters box. Up front, in the box, was designed to cut off the curve ball BEFORE it broke. Or, positioning yourself in the back of the batter's box would allow you to watch the slider's movement.
Matt, question….. do you think it just happens that he was a pitcher first, hitter second. Its like he implemented heavy pitching mechanics into his swing. Feet close, hip falling down the mound, hands seperate then firing down the mound, only doing it with a bat in his hand. Almost like it was his way of pitching with a bat in his hands….
From what I have read in more than one source, he did settle for a 42 to 45 oz bat in the mid 20's, going a little lighter in his later years. But before settling on the 42oz, he spent years trying different ones, and used a 55oz for a while.
"The Sultan of Swat", "The Colossus of Clout", "The Titan of Terror", and "The King of Crash". Great nicknames, but "The Great Bambino" I think came from 1:04
Dude, Babe Ruth was packing.
Very cool. I noticed that Babe had a little hip turn in his load but virtually no backward load.
I think you did a great job dissecting his mechanics. I'm of the opinion that pitchers threw a lot harder back then than we give them credit for. Like today, most pitchers back then were good-sized men, most of whom stood over 6'. Walter Johnson is a good example of a big guy who Cobb and Ruth both said threw heat. He had a huge wind-up and used all of his momentum to whip the ball across the plate. Pro baseball started back about 1880 so by the 1920s it had evolved considerably, something baseball fans today seem to toss aside. I think Ruth, Fox, Gherig, Cobb and all those great hitters would've also crushed it today, maybe more than they did back then because of the easy access modern players have to trainers, weightlifting knowledge, and gym equipment.
the louisville slugger factory has one of his later bats on display with 15-30 ish notches on it for home runs hit and it was a 36 inch 38 ounce bat. so he made some adjustments. you could verify with a phone call. it's in a glass case in the louisville slugger factory downtown louisville. (main factory). ps they get all their wood from a company they bought called larimer and norton. they have like 5 places to cut wood and make the billettes in new york and upstate pennsylvania (white ash) havent kept up with the maple origin. i visited them all back in the day to learn the process and make bats at home as a hobby. they weigh them and grade them in three weights and ship them to louisville kentucky. therw was a lathe guy in louisville and he said they use a kiln to dry the wood now. he said it took the life out of the wood. they used to be air dried in square billettes stacked up for like a year ish and they were NICE. i got and dried and made air dried billettes and antique bats of lengths and weights. they were way better. ps there is a lot harder wood tham maple. maybe too heavy. they used hickory in babe's time and probably both. hickory was used i know for hammer handles and probably shovels and sledgehammers. peace, jim polo pennslyvania
I just think his timing was phenomenal. I don't know if changeups were prominent back then. He'd probably do better in the modern game than the 90s.
That bat tip probably helps load up some muscle to and increase the bat whip, maybe. I don't know that much about hitting... More about lifting weights. That little heave of the bat would stretch muscles and increase bat speed if the timing was right. I think he'd figure it out. Very interesting video.
1921 the ultimate season for the Babe 59 Hr, 44 2b, 16 3b , .378 BA 171 runs scored 178 RBIs .824 slugging percentage and 17 stolen bases